The Different Vitamins in the K Family

The different Vitamins in the K Family - Basic Principals

The understanding of vitamin K family

The understanding of vitamin K family has evolved, with the recognition of two primary forms of vitamin K, each with very different contributions to human health. The two primary vitamin K forms are vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) and vitamin K2 (menaquinone). All the vitamin K analogs have a similar structure as they share a „quinone“ ring and an isoprenoid side chain. Menaquinones are further classified according to the length of their side chain. Vitamin K2 comprises a group of molecules with side chains of 4 - 14 isoprenoid units. These are designated MK-n, where ‚n‘ represents the number of isoprenoid residue in that chain.

Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) is considered as the major dietary source of vitamin K, accounting for approximately 90% of total vitamin K intake. K1 is found in green leafy vegetables such as green salads, broccoli, kale, and spinach. Based on different studies of content in food worldwide, Suttie has estimated the intake of vitamin K in the general population to be between 70 - 250 μg / day. However, the bioavailability of vitamin K1 from food is low; less than 20% is absorbed.

Vitamin K2, menaquinones, differ in their chain length and their biological activity.

The most important types of K2 are MK-4 and MK-7. They are found in animal products such as meat, dairy, eggs (mainly MK-4) and fermented food such as cheese, yogurt, and natto, a fermented soybean product (mainly MK-7). Western diets are deficient in vitamin K2. The MK-4 and MK-7 forms are shown to be the most powerful of the K2s, and most important to health.

The market has adopted MK-7 as the standard for dietary supplementation.

Due to an understanding of the superior biological activity of MK-7, it has become the ingredient of choice in clinical health trials. With a half-life of about 72 hours, MK-7 remains biologically active in the body longer, compared to a half-life of about 1.5 hours for MK-4.

This allows for a better distribution in the body and activation of extra-hepatic K2-dependent proteins.

Although all vitamin K forms are Comparison of different K vitamins absorbed to varying degrees in the presence of fat, vitamin K1 and MK-4 quickly disappears from circulation in the body (half-life of 1 to 2 hours) whereas MK-7 has a very long half-life (2 to 3 days).

The reason for this considerable difference derives from their distribution and breakdown in the body. Vitamin K1 and MK-4 are mainly transported in the blood via triglyceride-rich lipoprotein fractions whereas MK-7 (and other longchain menaquinones) is transported by low-density lipoproteins. Due to the large difference in uptake and half-lives, MK-7 reaches bones and vessel walls more easily, resulting in more effective activation of osteocalcin and MGP. Only 90 μg to 120 μg of MK-7 once a day meets the daily requirement compared to 45,000 μg of MK-4 three times a day.

K2VITAL® is 100% pure MK-7 and is, therefore, one of the best supplements to combat K2 deficiency regardless of age and life-stage or gender.

Scalable capacity for mass-market production demands: Kappa’s current production capacity already exceeds the total projected yearly global vitamin K2 demand through 2020.Industry-leading pricing: Kappa continuously reinvests in R&D and manufacturing processes to drive ingredient price points to levels that support commercial adoption. In 2017, Kappa led the market with a 45% price reduction – marking a significant step on the path to mass-market commercialization of K2.

Kappa developed the K2 Formulation LookBook, including more than 120 ready-to-use product formulations and dosage forms targeted towards all K2 health applications and a wide range of consumer groups.

Kappa’s on-going ExperienceCard Program develops innovative vitamin K2 formulations in collaboration with industry leaders. Each ExperienceCard concept represents a novel product formulation that is specifically designed to solve an existing market problem or to address a health segment or consumer group in a new way. K2VITAL® vitamin K2 MK-7 provides the central ingredient in each of the products. Partners provided synergistic co-ingredients, innovative dosage or manufacturing technology, or other elements that make these forward-looking products possible.